Old Faith in the New Rules

The most powerful moral argument
Is the possession of magic that works,
And it doesn’t even have to be good

Magic—it can be the bleakest, cruelest,
And still be moral magic, if it works,
Thanks to the fact most magic rarely works.

Morality isn’t meant for failures.
People can only keep losing so long
Believing they’re on the side of the right.

That’s why it’s so important to believe,
To accept the bitter self-deception
That you haven’t lost yet, that your magic

Has been just a little off—self-respect
And faith in the righteousness of your own
Tradition, your own morals, are at stake.

But if the magic of your opponents
Works, works best, there’s only so long you can
Convince yourself their system’s worthless.

Sooner or later, you’ll steal their magic,
Or try, adjusting to accommodate
Your old faith in the new rules, more or less.